Breakfast of Champions, Bass Pro Shops Edition

Here’s how I created a homemade, Bass Pro Shops-inspired, Breakfast of Champions in almost no time:

Backstory

A week or two ago I received a flyer in the mail from Bass Pro Shops about its grand opening in Niles, Ohio, a city near where I live. Also, about this time, a social media connection¹One of my nieces. shared a post that happened to pop-up in my feed about this same Bass Pro opening.

Although the grand opening seemed interesting, I didn’t have any intentions of going to it.

However, I had to fix a problem with the front brakes on my motorcycle and needed items that were in stock at an auto parts store near the new Bass Pro Shops. So, on my return home from one of the trips to the auto parts store, I stopped at Bass Pro to check it out.

Bass Pro Shops – Niles

Quite impressive.

Not only was Bass Pro’s parking lot entirely full, but also the parking lots adjacent to it for other stores were partly full from Bass Pro visitors.

The expansive entry way to the store – similar to a foyer, small lobby, or enclosed front porch of a house – has two big wooden benches and the entire area is enclosed by glass panels/windows. The size and practicality, especially in winter or inclement weather, of this front entry would be nice to have at one’s home.

Even nicer, though, is the open area of the store as one walks through the over-sized wooden doors of the foyer-lobby. A big brick/stone fireplace (presumably gas fueled) was seemingly crackling. I would have sat down for a moment to enjoy it, but there weren’t any seating options. That might be intentional, though. Management probably would rather have people walking around in the store buying items than sitting, relaxing, and chit-chatting in front of an open fire at the front of the store.

Anyway, I won’t carry-on about how nice the store is and all the interesting products – gear, gadgets, and implements for hunting (new and used), fishing, camping, and whatnot – except to mention the gigantic fish tank in the back of the store that’s stocked with equally gigantic fish. As I was marveling at the size of some of the fish, a guy standing next to me looked at me and said, “that’s a big bass right there.” I agreed, even though I didn’t know it was a bass.²I assumed he said “bass,” in reference to the fish. Given the passers-by at that moment, I’m now not entirely certain. I guess it’s the store mascot; at least it should be.

So, what inspired me to make the breakfast?

Well, as I approached the storefront, one of several greeters began talking to me, telling me about all the wonderful sales specials, a raffle for a large Yeti Tundra cooler, and club membership. After asking a few questions about membership, filling out a raffle ticket,³I didn’t win the Yeti cooler. and then talking to her (the store representative) for a moment, she gave me a Black Rifle Espresso Mocha coffee, which I’ve never had before, and a Bass Pro Shops ball cap (or trucker cap, as they call it).

I thanked her.

Breakfast of Champions

So, here’s the Bass Pro Shops-inspired Breakfast of Champions that I prepared in almost no time:

Breakfast ingredients

• 11 oz. Black Rifle Coffee – Espresso Mocha
• 1 ½ tablespoons of Teddie Peanut Butter (dry roasted peanuts; no additives)
• 1 ½ oz. Sam’s Choice 85% dark chocolate⁴According to Walmart’s packaging, the chocolate is a product of Switzerland, to my surprise.

To prepare the breakfast, I only had to pour the ready-to-drink canned coffee into The Mocha House mug and then break the chocolate into small pieces and mix them with the peanut butter in a small dipping bowl.

An Average Joe Breakfast

Although I do make and enjoy versions of the Breakfast of Champions (using homegrown herb tea or homebrewed coffee as a beverage), bacon and eggs are a staple and hearty breakfast for me.

The eggs and bacon,⁵For this particular breakfast, I used hardwood smoked, black forest bacon from ALDI. in this instance, are topped with black pepper, turmeric, garlic, and some food-grade ground silica of sorts. I’ll write more about the latter in another post. I’m channeling my inner Nikola Tesla (the Electric Jesus) and still experimenting with it.

Breakfast Comparison

So, which breakfast is considered better for one’s health, the “Of Champions” or the “Average Joe?”

Well, according to the selected data, if one wants to keep one’s refined (or added) sugar intake low or close to zero, then the Average Joe breakfast wins since it has fewer than 5 grams of total sugar (none refined or added) compared to a whopping 32 grams of total sugar (about 63%, or 20 grams, is added) in the Breakfast of Champions. Note, too, that for men, the daily recommended maximum amount of added sugar is 36 grams (about 9 teaspoons), according to science research. Moreover, since sugar can be addictive, it’s not necessarily easy to reduce one’s intake of it.

Of course, the Breakfast of Champions’ large amount of sugar is attributable to the Espresso Mocha coffee since it has milk (which has natural sugar) and added sugar, which partially explains why it is so tasty. But, it is also fortified with vitamins and minerals such as calcium (247 mg), potassium (427 mg), and vitamins (A, C, E). And, one last point about the coffee: it has 200 mg of caffeine, which is equivalent to two 8 oz. cups of home brewed coffee or about one Short (8 oz.) cup of coffee from Starbucks.

By the way, I only had home-grown spearmint-peppermint herb tea with my Average Joe breakfast, so I didn’t include it in the table since the tea has no caffeine and only negligible amounts, if any, of calories, sugars, fats, and such. It does have a mildly sweet taste, though, perhaps from the menthol. For a sweeter tea, one can always add a teaspoon of local honey.⁶One may also search for, or submit a name of, a local honey provider in the USA here.

Closing Words

What about you? Do you have a go-to breakfast?

Footnotes

• 1
  One of my nieces.
• 2
  I assumed he said “bass,” in reference to the fish. Given the passers-by at that moment, I’m now not entirely certain.
• 3
  I didn’t win the Yeti cooler.
• 4
  According to Walmart’s packaging, the chocolate is a product of Switzerland, to my surprise.
• 5
  For this particular breakfast, I used hardwood smoked, black forest bacon from ALDI.
• 6
  One may also search for, or submit a name of, a local honey provider in the USA here.